Community engagement for cardiovascular health promotion among socially vulnerable mothers of young children - this career development award (K23) resubmission will support DR

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute awarded New York University's Long Island School of Medicine $201,744 on June 5, 2026, under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837) to support Dr. Arabadjian's progression from mentored researcher to independent investigator focused on cardiovascular health promotion among socially vulnerable mothers of young children.

The award funds a career development program combining structured training in clinical trial design, implementation science, community-based health interventions, cardiovascular disease prevention, and leadership development. Dr. Arabadjian's mentorship team includes primary mentor Dr. Spruill (cardiovascular health in women, clinical trials, behavioral interventions), co-mentor Dr. Ravenell (implementation science, community-engaged trials), and advisors Dr. Divers (statistical trial design) and Dr. Zhang (social determinants and community needs assessment).

The training component supports a pilot intervention called MOM.HEALTH, a community health worker-led ten-week cardiovascular health promotion program targeting 50 mothers of children up to five years old from two low-income childcare centers in New York City. The intervention comprises eight individual phone sessions and two group in-person sessions addressing lifestyle counseling aligned with Life's Essential 8 cardiovascular health components and stress management.

Period of performance runs from June 5, 2026, to February 28, 2031. Place of performance is Mineola, New York.

Arabadjian's progression from a mentored researcher to an independent investigator focused on improving cardiovascular (CV) health among mothers to prevent future CV disease (CVD) events, using implementation science approaches. DR. Arabadjian has developed a finely tailored career development plan, focusing on gaining expertise in: 1) clinical trial design; 2) implementation science and community-based health interventions; 3) CVD prevention and development of behavioral interventions; and 4) leadership and professional development. She has assembled a stellar team of mentors with complimentary expertise, namely DRS. Spruill (primary mentor - CV health in women, clinical trials, behavioral interventions), ravenell (CO-mentor - implementation science, communityengaged trials), divers (advisor - statistical trial design and analysis), and zhang (advisor - community-level social determinants, community needs and health assessment). In conjunction with her training DR. Arabadjian will pilot test a context-specific CV health intervention for mothers of young children (.5 years), using childcare centers as platforms for engagement. There is a need to develop innovative community-engaged strategies for CV health promotion among this population who carry a high CVD lifetime risk due to: 1) rising prevalence of CVD risk factors; 2) adverse social determinants; 3) unique stressors (e.g., high-needs caregiving; childcare financial costs); 4) low perception of CV risk and low preventive care use. This community health worker-led 10-week intervention, MOM.health, will recruit 50 mothers from 2 childcare centers serving low-income families in new york city. IT comprises 1) lifestyle counseling (8 individual phone sessions + 2 group in-person sessions) to address lifefs essential 8 components and stress management; and 2) clinic/social resources linkage. Aim 1 will assess feasibility with primary outcomes: 1) 80% participant program completion; 2) 80% successful navigation of clinic/social resources linkage (clinic appointment scheduled/social resources referral utilized) for participants with identified needs. We will conduct interviews with 15 key stakeholders (childcare center staff/leadership) to identify contextual feasibility factors. We will also track intervention costs. Aim 2 will assess acceptability with primary outcomes: 1) 80% consent rate of eligible mothers; 2) average postintervention client satisfaction questionnaire-8 score . 25), and 3) 80% completion of study measures (questionnaires, blood pressure (BP) and weight measurement). We will conduct interviews with mothers who completed (N=12) and who did not complete (N=12) the intervention, to better understand factors influencing participation. Aim 3 will explore preliminary effects of the intervention in improving health behaviors, perceived stress, and BP. This proposal directly aligns with nhlbifs strategic vision objectives #3 and #6. Findings will inform next-stage trials of MOM.health and will launch DR. Arabadjian's career as an independent investigator committed to improving CV health among younger women.